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Sometimes laptop is more than just a device. Using laptops over years, some of us tend to develop a genuine affection toward their little (or not so little) companions. We take care of them, putting them in a nice hand-made fabric, spicing them up with some fancy outfit and providing them with a personality using laptop skins. That’s not as bad as it sounds, and there are many ways to use laptop decoration (or laptops decorated by other people) as a source of inspiration. In some way you may also call it laptop art. [Content Care Nov/09/2016]

In this issue of Monday inspiration series we provide you with some fresh ideas to spice up your environment with laptop skins, engravings, sleeves, cases and stickers. At the end of this post you’ll also find some experimental ideas for laptop decoration — caution, you don’t want to replicate them at home or office — well, at least if you care about your laptop.

Apparently, Apple geeks are far more sensitive when it comes to accessories for their laptops — although we’ve tried to cover as many different ideas as possible, in the selection below many of the presented ideas are used on Macs. There is nothing we can do about it, really.

A hand-made laptop sleeve with a layer of wadding between the outer fabric and the lining. And with the designer’s name on it. Gorgeous!

Terry Laptop Case

A juicy laptop case for geeky girls out there. Price: $125.

Vinyl Laptop Sleeve

Aren’t they sweet? And yeah, this is a laptop sleeve.

Pinguins Leather MacBook Sleeve

Folds around the laptop. Unfolded it functions as workspace with an integrated mousepad.

Seejanework Cases

Looks like a CD-storage, but it is a pretty cozy laptop sleeve.

Giles Miller’s corrugated cardboard laptop case

Sturdy, stylish, and sustainable. This cardboard is 100% recycled. You can also personalize it with custom designs such as one’s initials (or an apple logo — as shown here).

Eoin McNally’s Packaging Case

The idea is people should recycle the cardboard that their laptops arrive in by reshaping them it into a protective carrying sleeve. The cardboard casing your computer ships in is treated with natural wax to protect it from spills and as an alternative to the usual polystyrene foam peanuts. We’re not sure we would actually use the handle to carry the laptop in one of these things.

Laptopwallet

Laptopwallet is designed to hold the laptop really snug. The slim design keeps a laptop safe and enables you to carry it, either using the wrist-strap, in your hands or in a bag without being bulky. Currently sold out.

Sometimes simple decoration isn’t enough. In fact, you can not just put a skin on your laptop or engrave it, or even use some fancy sleeve to give it a new outfit. No, you can go far further, use spray paints, decals and feather boas. You can also simply get some sweet accessories for your old friend as well.

Monster Laptop Sleeve

“Handmade and available in four different colors, the case reminds us of a fanged cousin of cookie monster. Plus, it looks more like something that would hold a Fisher-Price computer, as opposed to a Sony or Apple — keeping would-be thieves guessing.” Price: $65.

Pink Hello Kitty Laptop

“How to make a PHKL (watch out the pronunciation!) — ‘Pink Hello Kitty Laptop’. This is a project for two people, you and a friend, with notable guest appearances by your meddling boyfriend. Boyfriend is optional. ”

*Craser’s laptop cover

“It’s a simple furry cover, first time I sew something that big. spend the whole afternoon hand sewn and it fits perfectly!”

Hard Drive

Karim Rashid’s portable hard drive. Currently unavailable.

Getting ready for OSX Leopard

Leopard patterned (furry) plush. If you have an external hard drive lying around, such a plush will cost you around $10.

Macbook Sleeve

Fabric patterns, hand-made.

Laptop Cozy

A new home for the beloved one.

Laptop Cozy

Well, now it feels cozy.

Laptop In Fabric

Soft and nice.

MacBook laptop sleeve

“I sewed my new Macbook a laptop sleeve! No pattern, just a zippered pouch. Starting fabric size 14.5″ by 10.5″. Fabrics are Denyse Schmidt quilting cotton, pink silk Dupioni for the lining, unknown cotton blend for the pocket, and wool felt (2 layers on each side) for the padding.”

Stickers are always extremely subjective and that’s why also very personal. If you’d like your laptop to reflect the unique personality of its owner, stickers might probably be the easiest way to go and therefore a first option to consider. Besides, often they are simply cool and it’s a lot of fun to observe strangers reading them. You’ll find many more stickers in the Laptop Stickers Flickr Pool.

Jedibook w/ Technorati sticker

Unfortunately, Smashing magazine isn’t sticked here.

Powerbook stickers

In most cases stickers are pretty unusual; however, often personal music preferences are combined with the stickers of web-services the laptop owner uses.

Laptop stickers

Interesting idea: Bruce Sterlings puts his flight tickets on the top of his laptop.

The first sticker on my new mac

Well, that’s a good start.

Robogames

Often stickers are messages the owners send to everybody who will have the luck (or misfortune) to meet the owner of the laptop.

This may look like a Victorian music box, but inside this intricately hand-crafted wooden case lives a Hewlett-Packard ZT1000 laptop that runs both Windows XP and Ubuntu Linux. It features an elaborate display of clockworks under glass, engraved brass accents, claw feet, an antiqued copper keyboard and mouse, leather wrist pads, and customized wireless network card. The machine turns on with an antique clock-winding key by way of a custom-built ratcheting switch made from old clock parts. Video is included.

Dave Veloz’s Steampunk Monitor & Keyboard Remake

This is a wedding gift. The intersection of technology and romance is possible. Dave Veloz created this beauty for his soon to be wife in time for their recent wedding.

SattaMac – 1991 PowerBook 100

No, this Powebook doesn’t work any longer. But it looks pretty fancy. Painted Apple machinery.

Vitaly Friedman loves beautiful content and doesn’t like to give in easily. Vitaly is writer, speaker, author and editor-in-chief of Smashing Magazine. He runs front-end/UX workshops, webinars and loves solving complex UX, front-end and performance problems in large companies. Get in touch.

Marloes

Shane

Perhaps it’s just me, but I’m not a fan of the laptop skins – I prefer the original ‘design’ myself. I like some of the designs as they stand, but I’ve never been keen on the idea of customising kit, whether it be laptops, PCs or games consoles.

I do, however like the engravings – I think they’re a little more subtle.

Tadd

heh, these are pretty dang ingenious if you ask me. If I had a laptop (and the guts) I’d funk it up with some stickers and fancy paint … though I don’t think I’d go so far as making all Victorian style … as cool as that looks.

0

9

Billifer

My stickers tell the truth about my MacBook Pro (and about me): The most prominent one is “Parental Advisory: Explicit Content.” Another is for a local taco shop where I hang out all the time. One for my favorite record label, and one for a local radio station where I have guest DJ’ed. The stickers (or what have you) serve in the same way that posters do to college students moving into a dorm: individualization and making it one’s own.

To address Eric (#3): Smashing is a designer-focused site, and designers still by and large prefer Macs. To Zarathustra (#2): There’s no reason that all the millions of MacBook Pros should have that same sleek polished aluminum exterior, or other laptops the same black plastic. Isn’t that antithetical to the idea of design?

0

10

FortyPoundHead

Alrighty, then. I’ve been toying with the idea of giving my old Dell a new look, and this great article just spurred me into action. Really love the steampunk look, but a little beyond my patience level. So, I am thinking a nice deep blue, maybe some metal flake, then cover it with some high gloss?

1

11

Peter

@Eric
I think it shows a really big problem for Mac-users. They believe they are very “individual” and “special” because they bought a Mac but (ironically enough) unlike PC laptops every Mac laptop has the same design. Can you imagine how much this hurts?
Well, and that’s the reason why there’s such a huge need for Mac covers and sleeves.

MOin

Waldir

James

wow, real good stuff. It shows how incredibly creative human beings are when it comes to ‘improving’ or enriching their environment… truely a joy, especially for those who think, like me, that techie stuff is always to unfashionable. Appart form my beloved iPhone I find it hard to get anything stylish out there. I recently bought a really nice laptop sleeve from a company here in the netherlands called coverbee. Anyone else knows of some really stylish stuff? Would like to have more choice… greets, james

Bharath Kumar

they are really cool, i would like to have one of my designs as laptop skins but how do i get the output and only a professional can stick it perfectly without any wrinkles. can some one help me on this…..

Randy

mamta malhotra

Hi, i would like to create a laptop soft cover and sticker and rectangle retro style lap top bag for my new new 17″ macbook pro. i would like it to be a jewellery design and also to include my company name JEWELS AMORE. please let me know if and how that will be possible.

thank you

mamta malhotra
jewels amore

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61

lalalala

From the Datamancer’s Steampunk Victorian Laptop and down EXPECIALLY the
Dave Veloz’s Steampunk Monitor & Keyboard Remake and the Steampunk Monitor For Chic Geeks all I have to say is WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH THOSE LAPTOPS!!!! LOL! When I saw those I died of laughter, someone must die of embassment to have a laptop like any of those.
No affense if anyone has one…….. lol

0

62

lalalala

I was Joking about before but honestly they are really cool!!!!!, BTW
there….. UNIQUE!
I would buy one of those and sit it on the top of my bookcase and show if off to everyone that came in my room. (:

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